Wishes of the Night
by HuntressOfTheDark
Summary: What if... the Wraith weren't so dependant on culling humans and feeding of them? Human/Wraith pairings; experiments; OC's as well as characters from the series. Enjoy.
1. Chapter 1 Worries

**Author's note:** This is my first try at a fanfiction, so I hope that anyone who reads this enjoys reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. The story starts of with some of my OC's as paragraph leaders, but there's a lot of SGA-1 in the second paragraph to make up for it for those who don't really like OC's.  
I know this is a rather long chapter, but I don't pay much attention to the length of my chapters until I've actually finished writing them.

Enjoy.

**Disclaimer:** Since this is a fanfiction, it should be obvious that I do not own Stargate Atlantis or any of its characters. I do, however, own the characters in the first, third, fifth and sixth paragraph, and the Quenans, too.

* * *

Chapter 1 – Worries

The thick black of the night, combined with the howling of the raging storm, did nothing to improve her mood. If anything, it only weighed down on her more, increasing the building feeling of dread she had been carrying around for the last couple of days.

She tried to tell herself that there was nothing to worry about, that he could take care of himself. He surpassed her age by thousands of years, for crying out loud! Certainly he would know how to survive, no matter how dire the situation. One didn't live to reach that age and not have an extensive knowledge about pretty much anything you could get knowledgeable about.

Still… The feeling that something had happened, that he needed her, didn't go away. And she didn't like it. She had no idea where he was, where any of them were for that matter. There was nothing she could do now but wait, and hope for his return. Or at least a message. Or a sign. Hell, if he needed her, without any means of contacting the Palace, he would have Dreamt to her. He'd done that before, and it'd always worked, no matter how far away he was.

But he hadn't Dreamt to her. Not to tell her that all was not well, and that she needed to get her ass out of the Palace and to wherever he was to help him. Not even to tell her that everything was fine, and that she needn't worry.

So she stood as a frozen statue in front of a massive two story-seized window, looking out in to the thick black of the night, staring at the rain drops that slammed into the window, as if trying to break through it to reach her.

She didn't know how long she had stood there like that, lost in thoughts, when her most trusted servant came in to her chambers, waking her out of her trance. "Would you like something to eat, my lady?" She made a startled jump as his question brought her back to the present. "No thank you, Nerio, I'm not hungry", she replied while turning around to face him. He looked more than a little worried, she decided. "Something to drink than, perhaps?" He was always like that, looking out for her whenever she was too lost inside her mind and thoughts to look after herself.

The almost pleading look in his eyes made her consent to having a drink, and he hurried off, as fast as he could without actually breaking into a run, to get her a glass of wine. She was certain he was going to bring back a whole lot more than a mere single glass of wine, and sure enough, he came back carrying a tray that not only had one glass filled with red wine on it, but also two crystal carafes, one containing even more red wine, and the other filled with what she expected to be water.

There was no way that sweet servant was going to let her drink wine without having her drink at least as much water. He once said he couldn't let her dehydrate simply because she preferred wine over any other liquid. It annoyed her at times, but it also warmed her heart to know that someone was looking after her so well. That, and the fact that he understood her better than most other persons, made her think of him more as a friend than a real servant.

Nerio placed the tray on the glass table standing in the centre of the room, picked up the wine filled glass and brought it to her. She took the glass from him and took a sip whilst turning to stare out the window once more. Nerio stood next to her, staring out the window as well, looking at nothing in particular. It calmed down her persistent sense of foreboding a bit to have him stand at her side.

"You have heard no word of him, I presume?" He turned his head slightly to look at her face. She sighed. "No, nothing. It has been quiet for days. Ever since he left, actually." He laid a comforting hand on her left shoulder. "You should not worry, my lady. He is not due to be back for three more days, correct?" She forced her lips to form a small, but shaky smile while lightly patting the hand on her shoulder. "You are correct, but I cannot shake this feeling of dread that has been building in my heart. I just wish he'd Dream to me, so I would know for sure that I have no cause to worry myself sick." A frown made its way across Nerio's brows. "Doesn't he usually Dream to you when he is in some sort of trouble?"

"Most of the time, yes. But on these longer travels, he sometimes Dreams to me to let me know he is fine." Her lips now formed a real smile. "He knows how worried I get sometimes, especially with what's been going on the last few years."

She emptied the remaining drops of wine from the glass before handing it back to Nerio again. While he went to fill the glass with some more wine, she walked closer to the window, her warm exhaled breath condensing against the cold glass barrier.

"You can leave it on the table, I do not wish to have any more right now," she said to Nerio's reflection in the glass. She watched him nod to her back, than excuse himself to get back to his other duties. He could go to bed, get some rest, but she knew he would not rest until she did. And until her nerves would settle down some, along with her thoughts, she wouldn't be able to sleep, not deep enough anyway. Hell, she needed to down that wine all at once if she wanted to get some real sleep. But she couldn't do that. The alcohol would prevent her mind from receiving his Dreaming, just as much as trying to sleep with stampeding thoughts and frayed nerves would, if he Dreamt to her at all.

Somehow, she had to calm down. Then she had to go to bed, open her mind for his call, and fall asleep. For some reason, that sounded a lot easier than it was. Like most of her life, ever since he walked into it, about eight years ago.

He would come and go for months on end, as his superiors called for him to join the others in their missions. Everyone accepted the nature of this relationship, this alliance, between their people.

The alliance was beneficial for both their kind; his people providing hers protection from their, sometimes equal, enemies as well as giving hers access to valuable information to improve the lives of her kind; her people providing his a stable base of operations to fall back to should their other, stronger ones fail, along with continued research on how his people could overcome the one serious weakness their kind had.

There were breakthroughs in their researches and an experiment had been lounged, only to have proven insufficient for the long-term. But it had made the scientists of both people thinking, and they came up with something similar, only they needed something extra.

The previous experiment had failed because the two individuals participating in it – one of her scientists and one of his – were not attuned to each other. That's when the scientists had come to them. They had established a bond in the two years their people had been allies then, and seemed to be the perfect guinea pigs to try the new and improved formula.

She sighed thinking back about it. It had been most exiting for the both of them, and if it worked, they could be together on a more intimate level, without fear of causing one another harm. And it had worked. Because they were already linked to each other in some way. It was a major breakthrough, sure enough, but both people knew that creating a link like that between all of his people to all of hers would be far from ideal. Not to mention it was highly improbable that even a small minority of his people would consent to being linked to hers in such a way.

Nevertheless, the scientists had gained ground and could now focus their attention on improving their methods so that even the non-linked could benefit from their hard work. And back then, it seemed they had all the time of the universe to finish their theories and experiments.

Until about three-and-a-halve years ago, when all the others of his kind suddenly awakened. Now it was not just his people out hunting for food, but all their other previously hibernating enemies and allies as well. Which was not good for business. It definitely put a strain on the alliance her people had with them. Especially _her_ scientists got a bit skittish. For good reason, since they were no match for their longer-lived predatory colleagues.

But the alliance had held, and still hold.

It also meant that they were away hunting a lot more than before. And they weren't just hunting for food. Now they were taking on their enemies as well, to assure themselves a continued food supply.

For her, it also meant that the possibility was always there, that he would not come back from his missions and assignments. That he got captured and killed. And no one but her would truly miss him. More than anything else, that thought ripped her heart out.

She walked back to the table and drank the wine from her glass, before heading into her bathing suite to run the bath full with hot water. Watching the steam swirling upwards from the tub, she hoped that the hot water would help calm her down enough to be able to sleep. She stripped of her clothes and glided into the bath, turning off the tap, letting the nearly scalding water soak her skin. Warm water always made her calm down, relax. It helped her clear her mind from most of her worries. If only it would stop her train of thoughts as well.

As she noticed the skin on her fingertips getting all wrinkly, she stepped out and let the water run down the drains. She towelled herself dry with a big fluffy towel and put on her nightshirt.

Back in her main chamber she closed the huge, heavy curtains over her two-story-window, glancing out into the storm raging night one last time. Then she walked into her bedchamber and settled herself down in her king-sized bed. Opening her mind, she hoped sleep would soon take her.

#

They were about to wrap up the business meeting, concerning a meaningful trade relationship with a people called the Quenans, when the screeching sound of Wraith-darts passed over the main centre of the town.

The radio started cracking and moments later a very distressed lieutenant practically screamed in his ear. "Colonel Sheppard, five Wraith darts just flew over, and more are coming! A cruiser is heading this way now!" That was just his luck. After five hours of discussion to reach an agreeable deal – medical supplies and training in exchange for part of the harvest so the people on Atlantis could have some more variation in their choice of food – now it seemed he was going to have to pull off a rescue mission as well. What was it with these Wraith that they kept showing up at the worst possible times?

Even better, these people didn't seem to be very good at keeping a clear head in the face of danger. Not a good sign in a fairly industrialized society. The Consul – the head figure leading these people – was only short of hyperventilating out of pure anxiety, and those surrounding him did their very best to imitate his behaviour. Not a good sign at all. It seemed like he had to do this by himself then. "Lieutenant, get to the jumper and dial Atlantis, get as many of these people as you can and send them through the gate. And shoot down those damned darts before they cull anyone!" He gave the Consul and his counsellors an assessing look. They were definitely not going to be very helpful in their current state, so he turned to his team members instead. "Teyla, do what you can to calm them down, we need them to lead their people to safety. Ronon, you help our men getting rid of those darts. Rodney you…" He honestly didn't know what he needed McKay to do. The scientist seemed to be near panic himself. "You just follow me." McKay made a small nodding gesture whilst clinging on to his P-90 as if it were a lifeguard. Sheppard just hoped he wouldn't accidentally get shot at with it. Although it would most certainly add up to his luck today if he would.

Ronon dodged past him to aid the military unit that was sent with them so Atlantis could be updated every hour on their status. Teyla was exerting her never-ending calmness on the not so calm Quenan leaders, at least gaining their attention, although it would probably take a while for them to be of real use to their own people.

_Okay, let's see what's going on out there,_ John thought to himself,_ I sure hope those five hours weren't a complete waste of time after all._ They had originally intended to give these people some sort of military training, so they could be of aid in their renewed war against the Wraith, now that the Replicators no longer existed to do the exterminating for them.

It had seemed like a good idea at first, letting the Asurans destroy all the Wraith hive-ships, but of course, things never went as were intended, and the Replicators had begun to destroy human worlds instead, so the Wraith would ultimately starve to death. It was an effective solution from the machines' point of view, but for Atlantis and the rest of the galaxy, including the Wraith, it was a horrible situation. So they had banded together, and, using Rodney's home-made Replicator, Fran, they had attacked the Asuran home world, leading to the planet's ultimate destruction. Afterwards, the Wraith had gone their own way, and they'd become enemies at war once more.

The Quenans, however, were a very skittish people when it came down to arms and warfare, unwavering in their believe that nothing good would come from the use of weapons and long-range missiles. Not even the prospect of those weapons eliminating the threat the Wraith were to their people, and all the other human worlds for that matter, could persuade them to accept their first offer. And so the hours long negotiation had begun.

Now, it seemed, the Quenans were likely going to have to rethink their attitude towards guns and missiles, as those exact things were now going to be used to try and save them.

With McKay awkwardly close behind him, John hurried out of the convention centre and onto the city streets which were now crowded by even more panicking Quenans. He was beginning to seriously think about advising Samantha Carter to abandon any contact with these people. The last thing they needed was this pointless panic to pass over to their expedition members. "Lieutenant, how's the evacuation going?"

"Not well, sir, the people seem to have lost it, and they are running in every direction, except for the Gate. I gathered from one of the less panicking citizens, that in times like these, they are supposed to stay clear from the Gate as much as possible."

Well, that was just great. "Tell Atlantis to send back-up through the Gate immediately, we need to destroy that cruiser, and I doubt a singe Jumper is going to do enough damage."

"Yes, sir!" He hoped it wouldn't take to long for those Jumpers to get here.

Rodney jumped, pushing the P-90 into his back, as a dart flew over directly above them. "Rodney! I'm not the one you should point that gun at! Shoot down that dart instead!" For once, Rodney didn't hesitate or stop to argue, emptying his rounds on the dart with a surprisingly accurate aim. John didn't think he'd ever seen McKay shoot with such certainty, let alone hitting anything non-friendly with such ferocity. He most certainly had never seen him actually shoot down a Wraith-dart like that.

Both engines failing miserably, the dart rematerialized the Wraith it was carrying, before crashing into one of the factory buildings, causing a chain explosion throughout that district of the city.

It just kept getting better and better. Not only were their half a dozen darts flying over the city, trying to sweep up as much humans as possible before heading back to the cruiser – or hive ship, if there was one of those nearby –, now they also head to deal with living, breathing Wraith inside the city itself. John tapped his radio, he had to warn the others. "Everyone, this is Sheppard, the crashed dart beamed out some Wraith into the city. Try to stun them if possible, they could provide us with information. Only kill them if necessary." Knowing Ronon, he would most likely skip the stunning part and go straight for killing. The ex-runner always thought killing Wraith a necessity. Not that he could blame him for that.

Grabbing his own P-90, John took aim at another dart, heading straight for the convention centre, taking it out. The dart flew right over, crash-landing half a mile behind the centre. That's when the city's surround communication activated, booming the Consul's voice into the streets, leaving every Quenan to stop dead in their track.

Apparently, Teyla had succeeded in convincing the Consul to evacuate his people in the city to Atlantis for the time being. There was no way that the planet's entire population would be able to make it to the Gate in time, and by now the other city's and villages would've be warned to go into hiding.

After the Consul's brief speech telling the city dwellers to get through the Gate, all Quenans picked up their panic right where they had left them, only this time, they all went scurrying towards the Gate, instead of away from it.

John was wondering how many people would get trampled to death by their neighbours, when Rodney started jumping up and down beside him, pointing to something behind them. "The Wraith, the Wraith! I don't have a stunner. Do you have a stunner? What are we going to do? I'm too young to die now! Not to mention that I've got so much unfinished projects to work on. I _can't _die now!"

"Rodney, relax, you're going to be fine," John said while grabbing hold his stunner, silently adding _unless you don't stop acting like a Quenan right now, since using you as bait for the Wraith seems to get awfully tempting at the moment._

The two Wraith walking directly toward them spotted the stunner in his hands, and drew their own. John managed to knock out one of them, having to put six stunning rays into it, but the second one was now aiming at him and he didn't have the time to shoot that before getting stunned himself.

John braced himself for the inevitable, when the Wraith coloured red for an instance before dropping to the ground, right next to its buddy. "Nice timing, Ronon."

"Don't mention it. Is he okay?" The ex-runner nodded to where McKay was standing, wide-eyed, next to him. "He's fine."

"Fine? Fine?! I'm _not_ fine! I just faced death _again_. Don't you know how much I hate it when my life seems to be flying away from me?!"

John rolled his eyes. _Not again._ Ronon grinned at Sheppard's obvious annoyance with the scientist. "Yeap, you're right, he's fine." Rodney gave an indignant 'huff' and turned his attention to the Wraith laying in front of them. "Did you kill him?"

"No, I stunned him. It didn't seem like it was necessary to kill him."

"What do you mean it didn't.." Before Rodney could finish his sentence, which was obviously the start of another one of his rants, a big _bang_ interrupted him, followed by a message over their radio's. "The Wraith-cruiser has been destroyed, colonel Sheppard, sir."

"Very good. Now, if you could fly over here and pick us up? We have two stunned Wraith to take back with us."

"Yes, sir. We'll be there momentarily."

Teyla and the Consul joined the small group standing over the fallen Wraith. She looked at the Wraith, than at John. "Are we going to take them back as prisoners?" John looked her in the eyes. "Yes, we are. The holding cells have been vacant for a while, so let's see if they still function properly." She didn't seem to be too happy about the idea.

#

Kaos was sure he was going to have the most decent meal in years. The look of defiance was clear on the man's face, even as he braced himself for his fate, expecting to be brought down by his stunner any second.

He was about to send a stunning ray into the defiant human, when a hot, numbing sensation hit the back of his neck. The last thing he saw was the look of surprise on the panicking human's face, and a victorious smile on the defiant one.

Then there was nothing but darkness.

#

Samantha looked at the members of team 1. She honestly hadn't be expecting to be housing a few thousand extra people when they'd left to the Quenan home world a few hours ago. Not to mention two Wraith prisoners. The Wraith made her feel uncomfortable.

The only other Wraith she'd ever seen up close had been Todd, and he hadn't really been a prisoner in every meaning of the word, even though he was housed in on of the city's holding cells. Without his aid, a lot of worlds could have been destroyed. For some reason, she hoped the Wraith she was housing in the holding cells now didn't belong to whichever hive ship Todd had decided to join after escaping the Wraith cloning facility.

"How bad is the damage to the Quenan city?" She asked the question to John, but it was Rodney who answered. "Well considering that two darts crash landed in some important parts of the city – one of which was brought down by none other than my self," – a smug smile spread across his face – "the damage is pretty extensive. But for as far as we could tell, the key living quarters are still very much intact, so I don't think getting the people to settle back in their homes is going to be that hard."

Samantha couldn't believe what she was hearing. "McKay, that planet has just been attacked by the Wraith. We have no idea if and how many of the Quenans have been taken."

"Yeah, so? We're not planning on resettling those people now, are we? Besides, all I'm saying is that we do not have to house them here in Atlantis, because their own houses are still very habitable."

"And what if the Wraith are deciding to get back there with a full armada to check out what's taking the cruiser so long, only to find out that there is no more cruiser?" John interjected, cutting Rodney off before he could respond, answering his own question instead. "I'll tell you what's going to happen. Not only will they do a full planet culling, they will also destroy everything standing on that planet to ensure that no one will survive." Rodney was about to respond to that when this time Samantha cut him to the chase. "Colonel Sheppard is right. We can't send them back there, not right now anyway." She thought about the situation and came up with a possible solution. "The Daedalus will arrive within the next two hours. I will send Colonel Caldwell out to the planet to do some reconnaissance. If everything is and stays clear, we can let the Quenans go back there in a few days. Colonel Sheppard, you will join the Daedalus when they head out to that planet."

"Yes, ma'am."

"In the mean time, try to figure out what you can concerning the hive ship that cruiser belonged to from those Wraith you've brought back."

At that, the team left her office. Sheppard and Ronon were off to the holding cell and it's new occupants, Rodney was heading back to his lab, most likely with a detour through the mess hall and Teyla was probably going to go to the infirmary for a check-up on her and her unborn child.

Sitting back in her chair, Samantha wondered if Atlantis ever knew any quiet times.

#

He was laying facedown on a cold, hard floor, with the worst headache he'd ever had. And he hadn't had many. He tried to move, but all his limbs were stiff and numb. He didn't understand. What was he doing on a cold floor anyway?

He tried to get up once more, but his body didn't want to obey him. Hissing, he closed his eyes, hoping his head would stop feeling like it was about to explode.

That's when it hit him.

The sting at the back of his neck. The surprised look on the anxious' face. The triumphant smile on the one that had shot down his companion. The footsteps of someone behind him before he fell down as well, passing out completely.

They had captured him. He was in enemy hands now.

His companion… What'd become of him? He reached out with his mind to try and contact him, but all it did him was increasing his headache. Damn it! He couldn't move, couldn't open his eyes properly and he couldn't establish a mind-link. This was not good.

He growled low in his throat. His companion _had_ to be here. _Had_ to be fine. If something had happened to his companion, it was all _his_ fault, he knew it.

He shouldn't have hesitated. Should have stunned those humans immediately. But the thought of their screams as they begged him for their lives whilst he fed off them was way too tempting. He couldn't resist that prospect, so he'd told his companion to keep the stunner at bay, that they were going to do this the good old-fashioned way. And of course he'd listened.

And look where that decision had gotten him… them. He growled again. This couldn't be happening! This was not supposed to happen! If word of this got out to the Queen… She'd have his life, that much was for sure, no matter what happened next. But if his companion had gotten harmed… Or killed… He'd be begging for his death before the Queen was done with him.

_No_. He _had _to be fine! He reached out with his mind again, ignoring the building pain behind his eyes, probing for the mind of his companion.

Nothing. His head was killing him. But he couldn't give up. He intensified his effort, nearly passing out because of the pain.

There..! It was very weak, but it was there. The mind of his companion. Still unconscious, but alive. He let out a sigh of relieve before closing his eyes again, resting his head on that cold, hard floor.

#

Silence... Blackness... Floating in an endless void. Nothing to hold on to.

Flashes of blue… Memories. A stunner... Six blasts to the chest. Falling down...

Growling… Frustrated, desperate. A voice. Searching…

A light breeze. Like the wind, brushing against your shoulder. A sensation of relieve.

A single word, whispered, from the distance. "… _Alive_…" Slipping away…

Following the whisper's retreat. Back towards the light… Connecting with the body.

Opening his eyes, he stared up at a dark, gray ceiling. Looking around, he searched for the source of the whisper that had brought back his mind. Kaos was laying only two foot away, facedown, breathing shallow.

With predatory speed he crouched down next to him. Sensing out with his mind, he could tell that the other Wraith was still conscious, just in no condition to do much, other than wait for the effect of the stunning ray to wear off. He tried to send some of his strength to him. It seemed like the best thing to do, considering he would still be in the void if that whisper hadn't reached him.

As Kaos started to twitch, he looked around the room.

They were surrounded by bars… And guards.

#

_To be continued_

#


	2. Chapter 2 Dedication

**Autor's note: **Chapter 2 of my own Stargate Atlantis story. I already had this one finished, so here it is. Chapter 3 will be up soon too. I hope that whoever reads this will enjoy reading it. I know the chapters are rather long, but I write fast and don't really pay attention to how much I've written until the chapter is actually finished. But than again, I like reading long chapters, and I hope you do, too.  
Reviews are welcome, too! They keep me motivated.

**Disclaimer:** Since this is a fanfiction, it should be obvious that I do not own Stargate Atlantis or any of it's original characters and worlds.  
I do own: Drew Ashford, the Wraith Queen, the Quenans, Kaos, the nameless Wraith, Nerio and Gabrielle. They are the creations of my own overly active imagination.

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Chapter 2 – Dedication

Gun drawn, Specialist Ronon Dex paced around the holding cell, glaring at its two new acquired occupants, while Colonel Sheppard tried to get information from them concerning their hive ship and the failed culling.

So far, it wasn't getting them anywhere. The one he'd stunned refused to talk at all, merely following him with his eyes whenever he walked back into the Wraith's line of vision. Other than that, the Wraith was completely motionless.

The other one had spoken to them once, and it was, of course, nothing useful. An idle threat made by a prisoner who didn't want to lose face in front of his buddy. That's what he'd thought when the Wraith had said 'You've made a huge mistake by keeping us prisoner here'. Ronon agreed with that. As far as he was concerned, they should be dead, not alive. "They're not going to talk, Sheppard."

The Colonel shrugged once and let out a sigh. "You know what, I think you're right. Let's head back up, I still have to prepare for my little trip on the Daedalus."

Not deigning to look at their prisoners, they left the holding cell area, leaving the Wraith in the company of their five assigned guards.

As John walked off to his quarters, Ronon decided to work of his frustration with some sparring exercises. Dealing with the Wraith always made his blood boil. Made him want to wrap his hands around their necks and strangle them, as slowly as possible. Not that he'd ever done that, always blasting holes through them with his energy gun, but he could always fantasize about alternate killing methods.

As he walked down the corridor of the training rooms, he could hear someone was already working out. By the sounds of it doing a warming-up. He decided to go check out the moves of whoever was training right now.

He paused in the doorway, following the perfectly choreographed moves of the young lieutenant he'd taken on as his protégé a few months ago.

The young man had been newly added to the expedition back then, and he'd shown real potential for hand-to-hand combat. With some tips and advises and a tight training schedule, the lieutenant had made excellent progress, outshining most of the other military personnel from Earth in speed and agility. Especially when it came down to dealing out blows faster then his opponent could block.

He'd told Ronon that his motto had always been 'the best defence is to have a better offence than your opponent', and it seemed like the man really lived up to that.

"Nice moves, lieutenant Ashford. You keep improving by the minute."

"Thank you, sir." The lieutenant didn't pause his warming-up.

"Care to do some sparring when you're done with that?" He could sure as hell do with a worthy opponent right now to cool down his blood. And quite frankly, they didn't get much better than Drew Ashford. Except, of course, for Teyla, but with that baby getting bigger and bigger, she only worked out on fitness machines nowadays.

"No problem, almost done anyways."

Good. He looked forward to see how much Drew had improved since the list time they sparred. If he'd gotten any better, he would probably be doing more than just blowing of steam.

He would have to work his butt off to get down this opponent. And he couldn't wait to get started.

#

He'd been hoping to get some rest, enjoy some fresh air after another monotonous month in hyperspace, ferrying back and forth between Earth and Pegasus.

Not that he minded doing some exploring for a change, but all Colonel Steven Caldwell really wanted, was some time away from the Daedalus, walking through the halls and corridors of that miraculous city called Atlantis.

Now he was on his way again, not two hours after he dropped out of hyperspace and got in orbit around Atlantis's planet.

From what he'd been told, the Wraith could be planning on destroying the planet he was heading to now, so the shields were put up at maximum capacity, and weapons were on stand by.

Too bad Colonel Sheppard hadn't been able to get more information from those Wraith they'd imprisoned.

"We'll be dropping out of hyperspace in two minutes, sir," his second-in-command said.

"Very well, weapons at the ready, we have no idea what we're getting into."

They were not alone when they dropped out of hyperspace. At the other side of the planet's orbit, a hive ship was scanning the planet's surface, looking for survivors amongst their own kind. There were none. The cruiser was blasted to smithereens, the darts were totally disintegrated after crashing down, and there were no life signs among the gate-city at all.

The Queen was about to send out a swarm of darts to cull the other settlements on the planet, when another ship got in orbit as well, loading it's weapons against her hive.

Calling back the fighters, the hive ship broke orbit and opened a hyperspace window, disappearing from view.

"The hive just broke orbit, sir, it's getting into hyperspace."

_Now, why would they do that? _Steven wondered. "Let them go. What's the status on that city near the gate?"

"It's completely deserted, sir, looks like the townspeople either got to Atlantis, or to one of the other settlements on the planet."

Colonel John Sheppard stood in front of the huge bridge-window. "And that hive ship didn't send out any darts at all to the planet? Everything is still intact?"

"Yes, sir, the moment we got into orbit, the hive ship took it's leave."

"And they also didn't cull anyone before we got here?" Steven asked.

"No, sir, but the scanners showed that they were about to send out some darts right before we showed up. Apparently, our arrival made them change their minds."

For as far as he knew, that wasn't very typical. "Does this strike you as normal Wraith behaviour, Colonel Sheppard?"

John turned around, with a puzzled look on his face. "No, sir." He seemed to be in thought about something. "Maybe we should head back to Atlantis, Colonel. Our prisoners might be able to shed some light to this."

Somehow, he doubted that. They hadn't been willing to talk about their failed mission and their hive ship at all. But there was also no need in hanging around here either, now that the danger had passed with the leaving hive. "Sounds like an excellent idea, Sheppard." And to his second-in-command "Set course to Atlantis, I'm sure Colonel Carter will be happy to hear that the Quenans can go home in the morning."

That provoked a snorting laugh from John. Arching a brow at the other Colonel, he was about to ask what that was all about, when the explanation was offered. "Those people really are something. They love to talk hours on end, hate violence, and if there were something like the 'world championship panicking', they'd definitely win gold. I'm sure Samantha's busy right now, talking to the Consul and all the other important folks, trying to calm them down."

That provided Steven with a vivid scene, causing his own lips to twitch in a smile as well. It seemed his next few hours at Atlantis had become much more interesting.

#

These new samples were gold. Finally she had the means to test her new theories.

She could have done so before, but it was decided not to take samples from their allied Wraith, who now bore the name 'Todd'. And she did agree with that decision, completely, even though it had meant her theories would remain nothing more than untested idea's. But now that she had fresh samples from live Wraith to work with, she was ecstatic. And the fact that Colonel Carter had given her the green light to put her experiment into practise just made her walk around gleaming.

She was determent to find out exactly where Carson's experiment had gone wrong, and how. His theory had been solid. And his retro-virus had worked. Sort of.

Okay, it wasn't perfect, but it did what he had said it would do; turn Wraith into humans by stripping away the bug-DNA. At least that had been the plan, only Carson's version only suppressed that part of the Wraith.

Now she was going to find out a way of permanently changing them. And these samples were going to make that dream come true. For Carson.

She'd always felt like she took a place that wasn't for her, that she wasn't worthy. And Carson had been a fantastic member of the Atlantis expedition. Maybe, if she could find out a way to make his retro-virus work properly, she would be worthy of his place, while honouring that brilliant man at the same time.

She was about to start her first series of tests, when Ronon came walking into the infirmary, supporting a limping man, that looked like his protégé.

"Now, what do we have here? Another sparring accident?" Jennifer Keller gave Ronon a stern look before turning her attention to the beat up man.

Even though the guy looked like he got worked around with a baseball bat, he didn't seem to have lost his wits. "It's really nothing doc. Just some scrapes and bruises."

"That might be, but you're going to need stitches on most of those 'scrapes'. Now lie down on that bed, and I'll get my gear."

Drew hopped on the bed with a lot more bravura than he thought he could muster, but the moment the good doctor turned her back on him, he couldn't help but grimacing at the burning pain that had shot through his aching muscles as he landed on the bed.

Ronon couldn't help but grin at the look on Drew's face. The man had a serious talent at both fighting and acting. Although he didn't try out those acting abilities on him. Wouldn't have worked anyway, 'cause he knew the young lieutenant was having a bad case of sore muscles; the inevitable result of sparring with a pissed off ex-runner.

It didn't take her long to set the stitches, and where she usually took her time for a little chit-chat with her patients, she now worked in totally silence, all the while thinking about the tests she was going to run on her samples.

When the stitches were all in place, Drew got off the bed again, and slowly made his way to the door, careful not to tore his newly made stitches right away. He knew how much the good doctor hated that sort of carelessness. He expected Ronon to trail him until he got back to his own quarters, but the man was still standing in the infirmary, looking at dr. Keller. Not wanting to intrude on anything that might be going on between them in there, he walked back to his room alone.

"You've never been this silent before," he said to the, again distracted, chief medical officer. "Is something on your mind?"

Snapping out of her daydreaming about her experiment, she turned around, looking into those always assessing eyes. "No. Yes. I mean… I'm working on an experiment, based on dr. Beckett's research on Wraith anatomy and physiology."

"You mean the one he based his retro-virus on? The one that created Michael?"

"Yes."

"Stop it right now. That stuff has brought us nothing but trouble. If you want to help the galaxy, take a gun and shoot as many of the bastards as possible. They deserve it."

She was peeved by this sudden outburst. A bit of support would have been welcome, even expected, but this was not a reaction she'd thought she'd get. "I'm not planning on making a bunch of new Michaels. I'm not even going to make a better retro-virus. At least, not yet.

"I want to find out what went wrong with the drug Carson made, see if I can make some changes in the formula, to make the turning more… permanent, before I'll even attempt to use my own drug on a Wraith. Trust me, I know what happened in the past, and I don't want to repeat it. Really, I don't."

"No one does, that's why I think you should stop this, before you get in over your head and want to try this thing out no matter what."

"I'll be careful, I promise. If it doesn't work out with the samples, I won't try anything on a real one, I swear." She gave him her most innocent-but-sincere look, hoping it would calm him down, drop the subject.

"Yeah, well, don't say I didn't warn you." Not wanting to piss her off, or hurt her feelings, he gave her a warm-but-not-encouraging smile before walking off. He suddenly felt like working out again. Maybe he could persuade John into a running match when the Daedalus got back.

Finally able to put all her attention on her formula and her precious samples, Jennifer went back to her worktable to start her experiment in complete silence. No need to tell everyone right away what she was working on. Ronon was right, the past experiment had been an utter failure, one they still regretted. And she didn't want to lose respect among the expedition members so soon after getting here.

As their doctor, she needed their trust. And as Ronon's reaction had showed, letting people know what she was up to, even with Samantha's permission, was going to damage that trust; something she couldn't afford.

But she was going to make this a success. She was certain of it.

#

Desolated no-man's-land. Scrubs and trees all withered and dying. The sky ash grey, leaving a mark of lifelessness to the area. Even the sun, that big gorgeous orb of joy and energy, couldn't brighten up this environment.

Impossible to really tell the difference between night and day here. The gloominess never faded. The birds didn't sing their songs in appraisal for the new day, didn't sing goodbye during dusk.

Nothing could find happiness here. No one would call this home.

And it wasn't home. It wasn't real. Just a figment of her thoughts, as black and bleak as her mind.

No word had reached her. No sign had been given. No Dream had touched her. Not once since he left.

She feared for him. Every passing day, it became worse to bear. He should have been back yesterday. Or early this morning at least.

But he hadn't come. His Queen came. His people came. But he didn't.

The Queen had said that there was no sign of him. The planet had been deserted, at least where they should have been. The Gate-sight had been desolated. Like the landscape she now walked in her slumber.

Grieve had torn through her heart. It seemed what she had always feared had finally come true. He wouldn't be back this time. She was truly alone again. Nothing could console her. Not even Nerio. The sweetheart had tried everything he could to cheer her up, to help her stay clear of mind.

Her people needed her. She had to be strong. Yet she couldn't. Not now, not yet. The pain was too raw to ignore. Tears kept welling up, so in the end, she had to retreat to her chambers, as to not embarrass herself in front of her counsel. Her trusted advisers. The men and women who always looked to her when in need of advice, guidance.

But now, she couldn't guide herself. She felt utterly lost. Her thoughts had stopped, her mind stood still. Everything was so surreal. Laying down on her bed, she had fallen asleep after a while. Cried till she couldn't cry anymore.

Woke up in this dreamscape. This desolated nothingness that resembled exactly how she felt now. How she had felt for some time.

She didn't want to look around. Didn't want to acknowledge this part of her. The part that had given up hope. The part that slowly began taking over her. Changing her.

She wanted to fight it, but she no longer had the strength, or the will, to do so. Instead, she walked on through her dark wasteland, her heart breaking again and again with every step she took.

Her eyes burned with unshed tears. Tears that no longer had the strength to fall down on their own. And why would they fall? There was no reason anymore. No reason for anything. All those years… Gone. Without a trace. No going back. Not even the memories had the guts to show themselves to her. She wanted to remember so badly. But every time she came close, they flew away again. Becoming another part of the blackness.

She kept on walking. Walking, without end.

#

"_Call on her, damn it_." Kaos used the mind-link to communicate with his companion. Those filthy humans had no business with their conversation. "_She could help us. She could get us out!_" He'd tried to get his companion to do something, but the stubborn bastard hadn't moved a muscle since those interrogators had left, since they had forced them to give samples. Either freely, or after being stunned.

Having remembered the last time that human had stunned him, he'd let them take their samples. But he had refused to let them near his companion. This was all his fault anyway. No need for him to become a bigger part of his mistake.

But he was getting sick of this. Of the waiting. The bars. The humans. And his companion was the only one who could do something. Anything. _Now_.

"_I can't. These humans will know. They'll try something. You know how they are. You know what they did to the hybrid."_

"_Yes, I know what they did. But I won't let them near you."_

"_You can't help me if they stun you." _

Kaos let out a low growl. His companion was right. And it wouldn't be the first time either. Damned humans. _"They will have searched for us by now. Their scans will have turned up nothing. Reports will have been sent back. She will know about it. She'll think we are dead. Is that what you want? For her to give up on us? We're already late. And every moment longer of not letting her know, is going to shorten our chance of getting away from this place, alive." _Yet his companion could not be swayed. Fine, so be it. Kaos didn't want to go this far, but his desire to get out of this holding cell was greater than his wish to not hurt his companion's feelings. _"Do you know what will happen when that amulet depletes?"_ That at least caused a reaction, as his companion turned to look at him, calm acceptation in his eyes. He knew. _"You know what will happen to you. But what would happen to her?"_

"_It's not certain anything will happen to her."_

"_And it is also not certain that she will be left unscarred."_

"_We don't know it works. Besides, her amulet doesn't deplete. It charges."_

"_Precisely. What will happen when it is fully charged, huh?" _Slight panic started to show in his eyes now. It still disgusted Kaos how affectionate his companion was towards that female. And he was right, no one knew what would happen when her amulet was fully charged. Though, he had heard the scientists say that nothing would happen to her, at least nothing that would cause permanent damage, or death. Not that he would tell that to his companion. His thinking that the female could get hurt was going to get them both out of here.He'd thank Kaos for it in the end.

"_All right."_ Lying down on that floor, facing the ceiling, the Wraith closed his eyes, emptied his mind of everything, of all thoughts and emotions, all memories. All but one.

The face of his angel. The face of his soul-mate. The face of the woman he desperately needed to reach.

Walking into the dreamscape, he called out with his mind. Looking for her. Searching for that one amazing mind that fit his so well.

As the dreamscape changed, from the forests and meadows they had created, to the dead blackened wasteland, he found her mind. He called out to her, needed to hear her response, needed to see her face.

She stopped walking, froze right there where she stood, in midstride. He called out to her again, running now, trying to catch up with her. Needing to be with her, even if just for a moment, just long enough to tell her what happened, where they were.

As he came to a stop just inches from where she stood frozen, he brushed with his mind against hers. To let her know she wasn't alone, that she wasn't dreaming. That this was real.

Slowly she turned around, eyes looking at the ground, afraid that this would be another disappointment.

His heart missed a beat at the sight of pain and grieve on her face. Her beautiful face. It no longer held any of her joy, her happiness, her love for life. He should never had left her in the dark like this. It was so wrong. She deserved better than that, than him.

But as her eyes went up to lock with his, all those emotions he so loved about her came flooding back. And with them the colours of the dreamscape.

This was the strong-minded woman he cared for so much. The woman he wanted to be with more than anything in the universe. The woman he would fight for, always. He'd give his life for her.

His lovely Gabrielle.

#

_To be continued_

#


	3. Chapter 3 Love and Hatred

Chapter 3 – Love and Hatred

The reports were good. The MALP had shown no activity in the gate-city, and the scouts had reported back saying none of the other settlements had been culled.

The hive ship hadn't returned after its leave at the Daedalus' arrival, which was now five days ago.

It had taken some time to get the Quenans to calm down, settle in and enjoy their short holiday at the City of the Ancestors. Samantha had had her hands full with the Consul and his advisors, who were all desperate to hear news from their home world. Which was, of course, understandable. But with the Quenans, the term 'panic-stricken' had taken on a whole new meaning.

So she had decided to authorize regular MALP probes of the planet, and a once-a-day reconnaissance by puddle jumper to check up on the people who were left behind. It hadn't helped much, but at least they weren't whining and complaining and hyper-ventilating 24/7.

Originally, the Consul had decided along with his advisers that Colonel Caldwell should go back there again, taking all of the Quenans with him, to drop them off after a week or so, if everything stayed safe.

The good Colonel had almost suffocated, having just taken a sip of his well deserved coffee, bewildered by the assumption that he would just go and do that without a moments notice. John Sheppard hadn't been kidding when he'd said the Quenans were actually an impossible people to deal with. Totally irrational in their thoughts, ideas and demands.

After discussion all possible solutions – there was no way the Quenans were willing to go home so soon, who knew what kind of danger good still be waiting for them? – besides the only one the Quenan leaders could come up with, they'd finally agreed on the terms.

Samantha was now seriously considering following John's advice on not continuing an alliance with these people. And she already had a vote in favours for that from Caldwell, dr. Keller, and several other expedition members who'd gotten tired of the endless Quenan complaining after no more than a day.

Some people just really knew how to elevate complains and helplessness to a higher level.

Just one more day, and the Quenans would be going home. Samantha had the feeling that the silence that would cause was going to be deafening. Right now, with all the whining from every single Quenan, she and pretty much the rest of the expedition members couldn't hear themselves think. Maybe once they left, Atlantis' inhabitants would reconsider the meaning of the words 'quiet times'.

At least Steven Caldwell had his hands full during this brief stay at the city. All the Quenans had so many questions and demands, that all personnel was getting rather agitated and snappy, so they had asked if the crew of the Daedalus could please come and help them out a bit. Working demanding functions and also giving explanations and tours and such were fine with everyone, for the first day or two, but after that, it became more annoying than anything else they could think of right now.

And Steven hadn't minded that, it gave him a sense of being somewhat important and appreciated. After three and a halve years, he still had the feeling that his duties were taken for granted by the larger part of the Pegasus-crew. Maybe now that would change a bit.

"I'll be glad when this is all over. I haven't had a decent nights sleep since our guests arrived." Samantha stifled yet another yawn.

Even though he'd liked helping out, Steven knew precisely how she felt. "Yes, amusing as these people might be, they do get tiresome after a while. I for once wouldn't mind to take a brake and catch up on some sleep. But I suppose that'll have to wait until they're all settled back in on their planet."

"Let's hope tomorrow's scans are positive too. Than we can put these last few days behind us and move forwards, find ourselves some real valuable allies."

"I take it you are not going to pursue an alliance with the Quenans then?"

"For the time being, I think it might be best if we don't run in to each other too often. Maybe we can become allies in the future, but I don't think we'll be of much use to each other right now. Chances are our crew is going to get homicidal if contact between our people becomes too extensive."

"You're probably right on that account. Though some Quenans are rather normal and okay to talk to." He thought about the young lady who had a crush on one of the expedition members. At least her company hadn't been annoying as hell, even though it puzzled him why she'd come to him to vent her insecurities concerning her feelings towards the lieutenant in question. Not that he didn't feel somewhat flattered by it. Things like that just didn't happen to him very often.

"The common folk might be easier to deal with, but it's not them we have to deal with on a regular basis in case of an alliance, that much is clear to me. Everything that happens has to be approved by that Consul of theirs, and his advisers. And right now, I'm not very much in the mood to deal with them anymore."

_Nor is anyone else_, Steven thought. _They are as agitating as it can possibly get._ "Let's wait and see what tomorrow is going to bring us."

"Yes, let's wait and see."

#

Guarding two silent Wraith was about as boring a task one could be given. But a military officer didn't complain. And besides, it had been fun in the beginning, when the Wraith had tried to scare them with their mind tricks. But considering that hadn't been effective whatsoever, they'd fallen completely silent.

Too bad he hadn't had guard duty then. He'd only heard the tales, here, in this room, where their prisoners could hear the guards mocking them. Not that they'd given any reaction as a result.

Now the guarding came down to watching two statues in a holding cell. Not exactly what he'd had in mind when he left Earth two months ago. He'd wanted off-world adventures, meetings with alien cultures. What he'd gotten was guard duties and training schedules.

His orders were to stand here, doing basically nothing, for five hours, and report any abnormalities. Taken into thought that these Wraith had been silent and frozen for the past few days, since their arrival and questioning, he didn't think any thing out of the ordinary, let alone something spectacular was going to happen.

Of course, the Wraith that had given them the samples – vigorously blocking the way to the second one – did appear to be more restless the last day or two, but that wasn't something to directly report to Colonel Carter. Simply filling out one of the many bureaucratic forms would suffice for that.

If his life in Pegasus didn't become more interesting than this, he would definitely consider going back to Earth. Being a sergeant seemed to mean more there than it did here. Not to mention he'd see his family again. He never thought himself as a sentimental man before, but being this far away from his loved ones, with no means to just go and visit them, made him realise something about himself. He could get homesick, and he did need his family more than anything.

Standing guard gave him all the time in the world to ponder on that revelation, and others, too. It wasn't like he had anything better to do.

Time crept by slowly, and every second he got lost more and more inside his thoughts. After a while, he didn't even see what he was looking at anymore. The bars faded together, the prisoners seemingly disappearing, the whole room changing into memories of his past. His childhood, college years, joining the military… Daydreaming made life here so much more bearable.

It came as a complete shock when all the other guards suddenly came alive, major Lorne dispatching information on the current situation through the radio.

Having been lost in his own memories for who knew how long, he'd totally missed what the commotion was all about.

Taking a look at the holding cell clarified the sudden activity. One of the Wraith had lied down, and the sample-giver was standing over him now, predatory like, sending a clear message to the guards on the freedom side of the bars. 'Don't come near if you value your life'.

Apparently, guard duty had momentarily left its dullness behind. For how long remained to be seen, but he wouldn't complain about the shifted sight.

But all too soon, the sight became monotonous again. One Wraith on the floor, the other one guarding its unconscious body. No more than statues again. Only the poses were different. It wasn't even worthy for Colonel Carter to come and have a look, or at least team 1.

As long as the Wraith pretended to be statues, no one of importance would come down here, unless there was something they needed from them. And in that case, the expedition members would sooner get information from a rock than from those in the cell.

Frigging waste of time. Why did they even bother taking prisoners? It wasn't like it was useful. Like they would learn something new. It was just completely and utterly useless. At least in his opinion.

But than again, what did he know about the agendas of the big folks here? He only followed orders. They would never tell him what was to happen, not until it needed to be done immediately and without question. Like a good little puppy.

Why did he ever join the military? _Why?_

It had seemed like a good an honourable thing to do at the time. Not to mention seeing the proud look in his fathers eyes. His father, who was disabled, handicapped. His father, who's dream had always been to serve his country, but who never got the chance. Through his son, he'd had that chance at last.

No, he was going back to Earth. Try military work there. At least there, if it didn't befall him, he could always turn his attention on something else. Hobbies. A family of his own.

At home, everything would be better. He wouldn't miss this for a minute.

He looked at the standing Wraith. A chill went up his spine. The Wraith was staring at him. Didn't move, didn't blink. Just stared.

Why?

It made him feel amazingly uncomfortable, even though he was not the one behind bars. Still, the Wraith made him feel as if he were, as if he were the one trapped in a cage, without hope of escape.

And perhaps he was. Not behind bars, like the Wraith. No, his cage was bigger, yet more confining. He was a prisoner of his own life. Subjugated to the will of his superiors; the demands of modern day society.

Even caged, the Wraith's life still belonged to himself. Out here, on the freedom side of that same cage, the sergeant's life was in the hands of the rest of the world. His life would never truly belong to him. Never had truly belonged to him.

He'd lived an illusion up till now. Still lived that same illusion.

Strange that an imprisoned enemy could open ones eyes the way the Wraith had opened his. Caged, the Wraith was still free. Free, the sergeant was still caged.

The realisation made his dreams of going home seem all the less appealing. Sure, people waited for him, and yes, he missed them too. But now, now he would forever be aware of the prison that was called his life.

Even encaged they messed up your life. The sergeant felt as if he was fed upon. All illusions shattered around him, like a broken mirror. The life he thought he had was gone. And it would never come back.

He gave the staring Wraith a hateful glare. _Damned Wraith._ At least he was still on the freedom side. Whatever little satisfaction that gave him, it was enough.

_Damned Wraith…_

#

Everyone knew about the City of Splendours, City of Hope, City of the Ancestors. That mythical city no one knew the address to. The one place they now needed to reach.

The Dream had brought back hope. Hope for the continuation of the alliance. Hope for the completion of the experiment. Hope for the future. All hard work had not been lost, had not been in vain. They were alive.

_He_ was alive. There were no more feelings of dread and foreboding. Only determination remained. She was going to get him back. She was going to preserve the alliance, ease the tension that had been growing between scientists at both sides. And even more important, she was going to exchange their amulets before his depleted fully.

Time was of the essence now, they needed to get into that city, fast. But with not one people of her human trade relations having the address to the City of Splendours, it was going to be tricky.

Thank god the Queen of the hive knew some human worlds who did have the address, even though they did their best to keep it a secret. The moment Gabrielle had told her about the Dream, and the complication, she sent one of her commanders to interrogate the humans they kept in the cocoons.

One of them had information. He belonged to one of the few worlds in possession of the dialling code, and, with some persuasion, gave the name of his home world.

After informing Gabrielle of this revelation, they'd set out to that world, with the promise they'd cull every last person if that was what it took to get the address.

Gabrielle hoped it wouldn't have to come to that. She was aware of their need to feed of humans all too well, but the entire point of their experiments was to find an alternate solution. It still made her feel quite queasy to think about the fate of all those humans on other worlds. She hoped that these people would be wise enough to just give the right symbols, in the right order. She'd had no dealings with the Genii, but she hoped they were a wise people. That they wouldn't fight too much. That they would help her out, even if they didn't know of her existence.

She walked around the Gate room, a huge hall beneath the Palace. The big circular Gate stood in its centre. All around it were devices for who knew what. There was a device that dialled to other worlds, their were machines to generate voice messages to people on the other side of the activated Gate, and as a result of their alliance, the Gate room now had a machine that could make video images and sent it to devices similar on other worlds, so there could be contact without actually going through the Gate.

Gabrielle had no idea which devices did what, but the engineers working with them said everything was in order, and ready to be activated as soon as the address was dialled.

She hoped the hive would return soon, she didn't like to spend time down here. The walls were barren and made of stone the colour of a rain filled cloud. It depressed her to look at them.

Normally she didn't come down here. Very few people did. Ever since their alliance with the hive, the Gate had been rather inactive. They had staid in contact with only three other worlds, who still had a long way to go before getting as technologically advanced as her world was. She'd managed to persuade the Queen to leave these three worlds alone, since they provided her people with the ores, minerals and food they needed. She didn't have enough farmers to provide for every single one of the worlds inhabitants.

In any other case, she would have sent one of her advisors down here to deal with other worlds, but this situation was quite different. She wanted to deal with those Atlanteans herself. Besides, only she had the necessary expertise to make this rescue mission a success. Persuading and convincing people was what she did best. It's why she was leader to her people.

She wasn't born Princess. It didn't work like that.

After the last King had died, the Palace had become vacant again, all it's occupants moving out, except for the servants. Servants lived their entire lives in the Palace, unless they were no longer wanted there.

The King's advisors had searched for a new leader. A strong person who could handle the duties that came with such a demanding position. Someone who could represent every last person on the planet, no matter what they did or who they were. Someone who wasn't afraid to make decisions. A person who dared to take risks, if for the benefit of all.

They'd picked Gabrielle.

After she became Princess, she had set up court at the Palace and picked her advisors. She kept some of the old ones, dismissed others and replaced those by people she knew and trusted.

Today, she was going to show to all that she was worthy of her position, even though no one but herself really doubted that.

She'd done so much for her people previous Kings and Queens had not.

If she could forge and maintain an alliance with one of the hive Queens in the galaxy, how hard could it be to negotiate the release of two prisoners who were of no value to their captors?

Comparing the two, getting those Wraith back basically seemed like child's play. Soon, they would be back here. It was only a matter of time.

#

It didn't prove too difficult to obtain the address. A shame really. Good thing they said it would be pointless to use it. Without elaborating on that comment. Some humans really were stupid. But this way, the Princess wouldn't be too upset about the amount of life force that had been taken. The Genii actually gave them a reason to continue feeding, until they clarified why dialling would be a waste of time.

So they needed some kind of code to get access to the city. The Queen couldn't help but laugh at this. The _Genii_ needed a code. _She_ didn't. She wasn't going to go to the city at all. The Princess was. And that girl could talk her way into anything, and out of it again. So what if those worthless nobodies needed to identify themselves with a device? Gabrielle had the means of broadcasting video signals. To her, that seemed to be a more effective way of gaining the trust of the intruders than a stolen code, thus being allowed into the city.

She took the last few years the man had left in him. Sighing in contentment at the strong meal, she let him fall to the ground. One of the drones would take care to get rid of the dead man's body, they always did.

Giving directions at the bridge to get back to the Palace, she strode through the web like corridors and passageways to her throne room.

Within the hour, Gabrielle would have the address to the City and talked her way into it. Knowing her, she wouldn't take no for an answer. When Gabrielle wanted something, she got it, precisely the way she wanted it. And she knew very well what the Princess wanted this time. One of her Wraith. The one wearing the counterpart of the amulet the Princess wore.

It had disgusted her at first, this closeness between one of her subordinates and a human female, cattle. But she had to admit; Gabrielle wasn't the typical human. Her mind worked like that of a Wraith; survival of the fittest. Gabrielle was a cunning woman, fearless. When she had her mind set on something, she didn't stop until she reached her goal. Just like a Wraith. And what she lacked in telepathic communication, she made up for with her ability to talk you into believing whatever she wanted you to believe.

No, there was absolutely no shame in having an alliance with this woman. Her closeness to one of the hive was an added bonus, actually. It kept everyone in check, even those who despised the decision to work alongside humans. They wouldn't slip for as long as Gabrielle lived.

But when she'd lived out her life, when she died, the alliance would die too. When that time came, they would have a very rich feeding ground to sate their hunger. Four planets with a rapidly expanded population.

No doubt people from other worlds would have heard that there had been no cullings at these planets for a very long time. They would move there, mingle with the natives, making stronger, more potent tribes.

The mere thought about that prospect made her hiss in anticipation. There was no way in Hell that she was going to give up on her nature. Not even when the experiment was a success, when a permanent solution would be found. She was still Queen of her hive; her instincts made her that. She would never allow it to change.

It wasn't long before her elite commander came to tell her that they had almost reached their destination, and would be dropping out of hyperspace momentarily.

Good, it was about time everyone got back into action. Her scientists had become increasingly tiring now that the experiment had been on a hold indefinitely. Now they could finally get to work again, and off her back. She was sure the Princess felt the same way about hers.

Before long, she would have her crewmembers back. Then she was going to find out what had happened for real on that planet.

Somehow, Kaos had to have been involved in this fiasco. Not just involved, but probably the direct reason. It didn't even surprise her anymore. He always did something majorly stupid. It was a matter of when, not if, that was going to lead to a nasty situation. Seemed like he finally outdid himself on stupidity. Who would have imagined? Getting trapped in Atlantis!

If he was the only one who'd been captured, she would have left him there to rot. It would serve him right.

But no, he had to bring the key link in their experiment with him, the moron. This was the last draw. Enough was enough. She'd had it with that idiot. Why didn't he just let himself get killed? He made her hive look bad, not only endangering himself, but the rest of the crew as well. He'd been a valuable member of the hive at first, but as all those long years passed, he'd made himself become more and more expandable.

Now, it appeared Kaos had finally reached his expiration date.

He would get no more leniency from her. If he returned, he'd die. For his sake, if he valued his life, he should stay away from her territory as far as was possible.

Yet it gnawed at her. He might be a stubborn pain in the neck, but he was honest. And loyal to a fault. His impulsiveness is what kept getting him and those with him into trouble. Not that that was any excuse, but it did seem… wrong, to punish him so severely, without letting him know the state of affairs.

How was she going to let him know, however, without the rest of the hive finding out. She was not going to show them _any_ weakness. Not for Kaos, not for anyone. She was getting soft enough as it was, protecting four human worlds now from any Wraith activity. Well, negative activity anyways. Having Wraith at the Palace was inevitable.

That was it. The Palace. She was going to have a private word with the Princess when they arrived there. Gabrielle could relay her message to him when she saw them. It was the perfect solution. She would not lose face, and Kaos would not lose his life. Unless he so choose to.

Moments later they dropped out of hyperspace. The Queen made her way to one of the transport ships, leaving the hive for the Palace. It was time to get their man out of Atlantis' clutches.

#

_To be continued..._

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**Disclaimer:** Since this is a fanfiction, it should be obvious that I do not own Stargate Atlantis or any of it's characters and worlds. They're owned by MGM and the likes... unfortunatly.  
I do own: Drew Ashford, the Wraith Queen, the Quenans, Kaos, the nameless Wraith, Nerio and Gabrielle. They are the creations of my own overly active imagination.

**A/N: **Chapter 3 of my SGA fanfic. Yes, this Chapter has A LOT of OC's in it. Not to worry, in later chapters (like Ch.4) I'll put in more of the series own characters.  
Don't know if you fine quality people who take their time to read my drabbles think the chapters are too long or not, but I never notice the length of them until they're actually finished. And if you think these three chaps're long... wait till I post Chapter 4... Reviews are welcome, too, if any who read this can spare the time to make some.

* * *


	4. Chapter 4 Revelations, part I

**A/N**: I had real fun writing this chapter. I'm very pleased with the result as well. I guess it's not as long as I first expected, but no matter, I still like it anyways. This is a chapter with a little more of the SGA crew in it, compared to the last chapter.  
I've just started writing chapter 5, which is going to take a while, 'cause school is eating away a lot of my time nowadays and I'm having a little writers block too.  
If there are any brilliant ideas or suggestions or wishes, let me know and I might work with them in the chapters to come.

--

Chapter 4 – Revelations, part I

Peace had finally returned. People were now trying to get the buzzing sensation out of their ears.

The Quenan leaders had not been all too pleased to hear that, at least for the moment, an alliance might not be the best thing to pursue. Thank god the Consul hadn't gone into a fit about it. The man had decided to let the subject rest. He did insinuate that when the Atlanteans came to them in the future, he might not be so easy to convince as he had been this time.

John didn't like the sound of that. All those hours of negotiating on agreeable terms didn't list as 'easy' in his dictionary. He really, really didn't want to think what 'hard' was going to be like with these people. He much rather dealt with people who were 'easy' by his standards. Too bad there was a shortage on those.

He stretched out on his bed, putting on the headphones of his iPod, skipping through the songs, till he found his favourite Johnny Cash song. Listening to good music was something he hadn't had the time for with all of their new visitors. Now that they had gone home again after a tiring week, he wanted to catch up on his own relaxation time.

What a week it had been. The Quenans never stopped talking; thank god they _had_ stopped panicking. And there had been that issue with the Wraith.

He'd tried to find out why the hive ship had fled when the Daedalus entered orbit around Quenan. Of course, the Wraith hadn't shed any light on the mystery, remaining silent. They were really good at being silent. Wraith weren't good conversation partners, the only exception being the Wraith he'd named Steve and Todd. Steve had only started talking because he wanted out, since he was starving. Todd was a naturally chatty fellow. He could respect Todd. Didn't mean he had to like him though. A Wraith was a Wraith. They always had plans of their own, and they didn't disclose those until there was nothing that could be done against them any more. Not the most trustworthy a race. Though they did manage to keep surprising you.

Sheppard had expected to have some difficulties getting those samples for dr. Keller, so he immediately told them they could either participate willingly, or after being stunned. People liked having choices, so why would it be any different with Wraith?

The two hadn't been too pleased, but being stunned again apparently wasn't on their wish list either. What amazed John was the aggressiveness with which the Wraith that had been stunned by Ronon, the one with the tattoo running along his forehead and down over his right eye, had protected the other one. It was very clear to everyone present that there was going to be no taking samples from the second Wraith.

The protecting Wraith had grudgingly allowed them to take as many samples as they wanted, all the while eying all the armed men surrounding them, making sure no one got any closer than they already were.

He couldn't help but wondering what had caused the Wraith to behave like that. Than again, what did he really know about Wraith, other than that they were the enemy? Asking them about there lives wasn't going to help gain an understanding about them, since the only response would be a stare.

If only he could read their minds. Or maybe not, he didn't want to have nightmares for the rest of his life. Who knew what kind of horrors he would see if he tried to do some mind reading on a Wraith. On second thought, he was glad he didn't have that ability.

The Johnny Cash songs didn't help him relax as much as he'd hoped. John felt too worked up to really enjoy his music, but now he was laying on his bed, he also didn't feel like getting off it again. Instead, he stared at his ceiling, humming along with the music, pondering about everything that had happened since their arrival in the city almost four years ago. To think he almost didn't come along… It was hard to believe a lucky coin toss was all that had made him decide to take the chance.

If he would be asked again now whether or not he would join the expedition, he would say yes in a heartbeat. Though he wouldn't be quite so careless in killing that Keeper. The Wraith problem they now had was mostly his fault. Yes, he did what he had to do, but sometimes, especially when having Wraith prisoners, it weight down on him. Not from guilt, but out of his strong sense of responsibility towards other people.

He'd made some crappy decisions during his time in Atlantis, all with the best intentions.

John didn't know exactly what dr. Keller wanted with those samples he'd collected for her, but his gut feeling told him it had something to do with that retrovirus affair. He just hoped Samantha was smart enough not to authorise another Wraith-turning experiment.

Sure, Michael was laying low, wherever he was. Whatever he was doing, it didn't bother anyone. Yet.

The last thing they needed was another Wraith hybrid out for revenge. Letting their prisoners starve to death was a kinder thing to do. For them, and for the rest of the Galaxy.

An involuntary picture of their new holding cell guests joining up with Michael popped up in his mind. Great, there was a nightmare scenario he could do without.

No, if Jennifer was indeed doing some retrovirus experiment, as he expected she was doing, he hoped she wouldn't put it to the test until she was absolutely 100 certain it would be permanent. Preferably keeping the amnesia side-effect, so their wouldn't be any ill feelings towards anyone. Though Ronon was probably still going to try to kill them, even if they did remain human. The Michael business had taught John at least that much.

A pounding on his door brought him back from his thoughts. He'd locked the door behind him when he came in. Obviously, he wasn't allowed to have some time to himself.

Sighing, he pushed himself up from the bed and slowly made his way to the door. Whatever it was, it would have to wait for him; he didn't feel like rushing for anything today. His day off.

John waved his hand in front of the panel, allowing the doors to slide open. They revealed an agitated McKay.

"What's taking you so long? The intercom message requesting our presence at the control room has been sent ages ago!"

"Sorry, I didn't hear it," he replied, holding up his iPod to clarify why. The scientist made an annoyed gesture with his hand. "Okay, okay, I get it, your music is more important than the state of affairs in Atlantis."

"No need to exaggerate, though it _is_ my day off, and I am _allowed_ to relax a bit."

"Yeah, well, relax later. We really need to get to the control room."

"Why?" _Oh god, please don't let it be the Quenans again_, John prayed to himself.

As if guessing what the Colonel was thinking about, McKay said "No, it's not the Quenans, but trust me, you don't want to miss this."

_Yeah, right._ "Okay, I'm coming."

Not waiting to see if John was following him, Rodney hurried away, back to the control room.

Wasn't he _ever_ going to have some time alone?

#

It wouldn't be long now. She had the address. She was going to get him back. Soon. First, the Queen wanted to discuss something with her. In private.

Gabrielle had told the Queen to come to her chambers. There, they wouldn't be disturbed. She'd told Nerio not to come in as long as the Wraith Queen was present. She didn't want him to get hurt in any way.

She made her way to her main-chamber, closing the door behind her as she came in. The Queen was already waiting for her. Standing before that same two-story window she herself had spent so much time the past few weeks.

Sensing her presence, the Queen turned around to look at her. "Good, you are finally here," she said in that strange sharp, multi-tonal voice.

Gabrielle gave a curt nod. "Yes, I am."

"There is something I need to discuss with you," the Queen continued, while slowly, deliberately, making her way toward the Princess. "Concerning one of our two missing Wraith."

She knew which one the Queen meant. Kaos. "Okay."

"I have not been too pleased with one of them for some time now. I do not wish to ever see him again. Not on my ship, not here, not anywhere in my territory. He must not come back. Do you understand?"

"I do. And you want me to tell him to stay away." She didn't ask it as a question, it was obvious enough what the Queen wanted her to do.

"Yes. He will not come back with you."

"You want me to leave him in the hands of the intruders?" That seemed like a very bad idea. The intruders didn't exactly bore a kind heart towards the Wraith, the hybrid being a perfect example to that statement.

"Yes." It was clear that this discussion was closed as far as the Queen was concerned, as she made her way to the closed door.

"But they will harm him." Gabrielle had to try something, she didn't like having to leave someone behind, especially not there.

"If he comes back here, he will be dead. By my hands. Choose as you see fit for him." She opened the door and walked out, back to her ship in all likelihood.

Gabrielle looked hopelessly around the room. What could she do? She couldn't leave him there, and she couldn't bring him back. Yet there was only one thing she could do. Letting him be the Queen next meal was not an option. She had to leave him behind.

It was going to be one of the hardest things she'd ever do.

#

John came walking up the stairs to the control room, to find Samantha, his own team and major Lorne's team all staring at the video-receiving console. It really had to be something huge if all those people were looking at it so intently. He secured himself a spot so he could look at the screen too.

The received video transmission showed a young woman, probably in her early twenties, with a regal feel about her. Her dark blue eyes had a seriousness about them that didn't fit her youth. She didn't smile or speak. Apparently, she was waiting for a reaction from them.

If he'd arrived a little sooner, he might have heard what it was the woman wanted a respond to.

It appeared she didn't like waiting too long for a respond. "We mean you know harm. We will come unarmed. All we want is to get back what is ours."

What was that supposed to mean? They had never come in contact with this woman before, and the background of the video didn't look familiar either. What could they possibly have that belonged to her, or her people?

"You have said that before," said Samantha. "Yet, you do not want to disclose what it is you want from us. If you just tell us what it is you need, we might be able to send it through the Gate to you."

"No. I much rather discuss this with you in person." The woman seemed utterly determined in getting what she wanted, John decided.

"I could send one of my teams to your planet to discuss what you want, and perhaps the terms."

"No. We have made it a habit long ago not to let anyone on our planet. It was a necessary precaution then, and one we keep alive now."

There was no room for compromise there, that much was obvious. He tapped Samantha on her shoulder. When he had her attention he softly spoke to her, so that it wouldn't be send along the communication thread with that unknown female. "Maybe we should just let them come. Now we can set the terms, and they already said they would come unarmed."

Samantha didn't look convinced. "I don't know John. We know nothing of these people, and we have no idea what they want."

"And were not going to find out either, unless we invite her in. She is determined to getting back something that she believes we have that belongs to her. Besides, what's the harm? These people can't be as bad as the Quenans. This lady seems to be trustworthy enough."

"I suppose you're right. But just in case, I want you all to have your weapons at the ready. For all we know, it could be a trick," she looked at everyone standing around her. They all gave a nod in agreement. "Very well." She turned back to the screen, looking at the determined woman, who was still waiting for a respond. "You may come into our city, on a few conditions."

"Name them, and we will abide by them."

"Only four of your people will be allowed on this base, including yourself. You will come unarmed and answer any questions we might have for you."

"Agreed. Now, if you will lower the shield? We will be there momentarily." And with that comment, the video transmission was cut off, leaving them staring at a black and white screen for a few seconds.

"Lower the shield," Samantha told Chuck, who immediately obliged. Seconds later, their new guests arrived.

#

Unarmed. Yeah, right. She'd never go somewhere unfamiliar unarmed. Especially not when the people in that unfamiliar place held one of her allies prisoner. But they didn't need to know that. No one ever found her dagger, not even with a full body search. As a leader, one needed to be prepared for everything, fights included. And having a concealed dagger no one could find always worked in your advantage, no matter the situation.

She gave a last assessing look to her companions for this trip, before stepping through the Gate.

She'd decided to bring along one of her advisors, one of her scientists and Nerio. She had no idea how long she would be gone, or how the people at Atlantis were going to treat her, so she wanted to have at least one friendly face with her, as well as someone who knew every last detail of their experiments. The advisor was just along the ride for diplomacy. It would make her look bad as Princess to not take one of them with her.

At the other side of the Gate, they were welcomed with aimed guns. Gabrielle didn't know what she had expected, but this wasn't it. Nevertheless, she held her pose, fists pressed together at the lower of her back, as was custom on her planet.

A small, blond woman stood at the bottom of the staircase, centred in front of the rest. She was the woman who had listened to her, allowed her entrance to the City of Splendours. The men and woman surrounding her looked vaguely familiar from the video conference, too, but truth be told, she hadn't really paid attention to any one but their leader, who now came walking towards her, hand outstretched in greeting. "I am Colonel Samantha Carter. Welcome to Atlantis."

Gabrielle glanced at Samantha's hand, before placing her left hand over her heart and making a small bow, whilst saying "My name is Gabrielle, Princess of my people." Folding her hand back into a fist, placing it against her right fist at her back again, she turned around to her accompanies, introducing them to the Atlanteans. "This is Gair, one of my advisors, the man standing next to him is Eber, one of my chief scientists, and this is Nerio, one of my servants." All the men had made the same bowing gesture Gabrielle had made when being introduced by name.

"Nice to meet you all," Samantha said, before introducing her team members. "These are Colonel John Sheppard, dr. Rodney McKay, Major Evan Lorne, Teyla Emmagan, and Ronon Dex."

Nodding in acknowledgement, Gabrielle glanced around at the armed soldiers who were still pointing their guns at her, then turned her attention back to Samantha. "The guns are quite unnecessary. I have told you we mean you know harm."

"It was just a precaution. I'm sure you understand." Than "Lower your weapons" to the soldiers.

"Of course, but I didn't come here to seek trouble, as I told you."

"Yes, about that. What is it that you think to find here that belongs to you?"

Everyone on Atlantis' side was looking extremely expectant. It made her lips twitch into a smile. They really had no idea. But she was here now, there was no need to keep them in the dark about it anymore. "It has come to my attention that you have two prisoners on this base. Correct?"

Samantha was stunned, like the rest of her crew, and it showed on their faces. "As a matter of fact we do. What I would like to know is how you found out? We haven't told anyone about them."

Pretending she did not hear the question, Gabrielle continued. "I would like to see them."

"Why?" John interjected. He didn't like where this conversation was heading. And how _did_ these stranger become aware of their prisoners? Something fishy was going on here, and he didn't trust it one bit.

"You will find out when you bring me to them," she gave them a knowing smile. So far, they reacted as expected. People never liked being kept in the dark. You had to play with that to get what you wanted. Curiosity always made them concede to things they wouldn't have when you gave them all the information they wanted. It was no different in this case.

"I will let you go see them," Samantha replied, "But your companions will remain here."

"All right. Lead the way."

#

He could sense her. She was on the base. He could feel her determination, her strength. _"She is here."_ He told Kaos, who's only response was _"Good."_

He looked at him from the corner of his eyes; Kaos was staring at that sergeant _again_. He'd done so ever since he'd Dreamt to Gabrielle. Every time that man had guard duty down here, Kaos would be looking at him. And the sergeant would stare right back. For hours on end, without reason. Or at least without reason to him. It actually amazed him that Kaos was showing any interest at all where humans were concerned. Though he had no idea what was so interesting about this particular human that he would have all of Kaos' attention every time he showed his face again.

"_Why do you keep staring at that human?"_

"_No reason. Just passing the time."_

Well, he'd have to find another past time soon, he could sense Gabrielle coming closer. She was coming here, to the cells. He would finally see her again, in the flesh.

The doors to the holding cell rooms slid open, allowing Samantha and team 1 to walk into the room, closely followed by the Princess. They cleared a path for her, so she could walk up to the cell, and the Wraith within it.

She looked at him, than placed her left hand over her heart, whispering his name. "Chrysaor." He repeated the gesture. "Gabrielle."

Then she gave a curt nod to the other wraith. "Kaos." He gave her a nod as well. "Princess." He always refused to call her by her name, even after she repeatedly told him to call her Gabrielle. He'd never swayed from 'Princess', and she doubted he ever would. Not that it would matter anymore soon.

John couldn't believe this. The Princess actually knew their prisoners. Not only did she know them, she called them by their names. Wraith really did have names! This was going to be a week to remember for sure.

"Could you open this up, please?" Gabrielle turned to look at Samantha, a look of expectation clear on her face.

"I don't think that would be a very good idea," was the response.

Not a very original answer. "And why not?"

"Well, maybe because they're _Wraith_?" Rodney said, staring at her incredulously. "There's a reason why they are there-" he pointed at the holding cell, "- and we are here." He pointed at the place they were standing.

"Ah, I see. And, tell me, Mr. McKay, what exactly _is_ the reason that they are there and not here?"

"It's Doctor. Dr. Rodney McKay. No 'mister'! And isn't it obvious? They're _Wraith_. They're _dangerous_. They suck the life out of humans! And in case you haven't noticed yet, we're all humans here." He looked at her as if she were insane for even asking.

"I hardly care about the fact that they are Wraith. And about the 'dangerous' part… If you would be so kind as to open this cell, I will prove to you that they're not as dangerous as you believe them to be."

"I don't know…" Samantha couldn't decide whether or not she should just do what the Princess said. The woman did look awfully sure about herself. Maybe there was truth to her claims.

Gabrielle noticed the doubt on the other leader's face. Good, she could work with that. "I really don't see the problem, Colonel Carter. They are unarmed, as I am, and we're surrounded by almost a dozen of armed men. What danger could there possibly be in opening that cell?"

She did have a point there, but she wasn't convinced. Wraith always had a hidden agenda, and taken into thought the close relationship this woman seemed to have with them made Samantha think that she might have one, too. This woman could be a worshipper for all they knew.

This was taking way too long. Why couldn't she just order her men to open the damned holding cell? "Here's a thought, Colonel. You open the cell, I go in and you close it again. You can let me out again when I'm finished."

"Finished with _what_?" Colonel Sheppard asked. "Colonel Carter, I think it would be a really bad idea to open that cell."

"I agree," said Samantha, "However, she did volunteer to let herself be locked up with two Wraith. Two Wraith she obviously is close to, considering they're on a first name base with each other." She looked at the maybe-wraith-worshipper. "Are you sure about this?"

"Positively. Open it up."

"All right." Samantha gave a nod to the sergeant standing closest to the control panel. He immediately inserted the code to open up the cell.

The force field that was pulled up around the bars dropped before the bars on front of the cell slid away, opening up. Gabrielle walked in slowly, all the while keeping her eyes on Chrysaor. When she was a mere two feet away from him, she twisted her upper body slightly so she could nod to Samantha, signalling that she could close it up again. As the bars slid back into place, the force field became active once more, too.

She studied the Wraith standing before her top to toe. He was weakening, fast. The energy in his piece of the amulet had almost run out. "Looks like I'm just on time," she said. Chrysaor nodded. "You are."

"Take off your coat." He swiftly did what she asked, buttoning down his coat, dropping it to the floor. Beneath it, he wore a simple, black, leathery shirt, covering only his chest and shoulders. His arms were bare, except for the leather straps he had around his wrists.

Around his neck hung a fine silver cord, with a strange looking pendant at the base. It was also made of silver and oval like in shape, with a ruby red stone in the centre. From the red stone, little multi-coloured tendrils were making their way to the sides of the pendant, attaching it to his skin.

She traced the line of the chain with her right hand, letting it rest around the pendant. "It's almost empty." A slight nod was the only response.

Dropping her hand, she inhaled deeply before opening buttoning down the first few buttons of her tunic, revealing a similar silver necklace around her neck. The difference was, that the tendrils on her pendant came from her skin towards the red stone in the centre.

Exhaling, she pressed the red stone, causing the tendrils to retract from the pendant. She winced as the tendrils retreated into her skin, only the ends of them slightly pointing out, awaiting the pendant's return. She took the necklace from her neck and gave it to Chrysaor. She then pressed the red stone on his pendant, the tendrils retracting completely into the amulet.

Taking the chain from his neck, she placed it around her own. As soon as the pendant touched her skin, the tendrils wrapped themselves around it, attaching themselves to the red stone once more.

Chrysaor put the new necklace in place, allowing the tendrils to attach themselves to his skin again. He sighed in relieve as the energy stored within the amulet slowly seeped into his body, strengthening him. The hunger that had started to burn fierce within every fibre of his body began to ease.

Gabrielle closed her eyes. This part she hated most. It always hurt when they had to exchange their amulets. That was why no one had wanted to try and participate as well, not until something definite was come up with. Preferably something that didn't hurt so much for the human side of couple.

She didn't care about that. She loved him; he was worth it. But they were the only ones with a link such as this, a bond between souls.

He watched her still figure breathing deeply, recuperating from the amulet swap. It amazed him still that she was willing to go through with it, though maybe not so much anymore as in the beginning. It just defied logic.

Opening her eyes, she saw deep into his yellow gaze, saw his gratitude. She couldn't control herself, flung her arms around his shoulders, buried her face in his tangled white hair; she'd missed him so much. "I'm going to get you out of here, I promise," she whispered into his ear, using his own language.

He wrapped his arms tightly around her waist, needed to feel her close to him. "I know you will," he whispered, inhaling the sweet, rosy scent or her hair.

All too soon they had to let go of each other. There were issues that had to be dealt with, first.

#

_To be continued_

#

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Stargate Atlantis or any of it's characters and worlds. They – unfortunately – belong to MGM and their respective writers.  
I do own my OC's and their worlds; Gabrielle, Nerio, Eber, Gair, Kaos, Chrysaor, the Palace and the Quenans. They are part of my own overly active imagination.


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